In my quest to find healthy yet easy to make, “normal” recipes for my family, I discovered the The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook.
I was looking for a cookbook that took regular food and recipes that even a novice can make, and made them healthier. Often, healthy cookbooks use strange and hard to find ingredients that just don’t appeal to my family.
We like fried chicken.
We like pasta.
We like tacos.
We like pizza.
We just would like to find ways to reduce the fat and calories but still maintain the flavors – all with traditional family-friendly ingredients.
Yesterday I was searching through my new favorite cookbook for a recipe and I came across a chicken enchiladas recipe that looked and sounded amazing. We didn’t have all the ingredients, so my husband picked up what we needed, and I got to work.
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts trimmed & pounded if necessary
- Salt & pepper
- 2½ cups of enchilada sauce (store bought or from scratch)
- 1 cup finely crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese
- 1 (4 oz.) can of green chiles
- ½ cup minced fresh cilantro
- 12 (6-inch) soft corn tortillas
- Vegetable oil spray (or you can use vegetable oil in a little bowl with a brush)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Lime wedges (optional)
- Sour cream (optional)
- Preheat oven to 350. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper.
- Combine the chicken and enchilada sauce in a medium saucepan & simmer for 10-15 minutes over medium-low heat. Then flip the chicken over, cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until chicken reaches 160-165 degrees with an instant-read thermometer.
- Remove chicken from pan and shred into bite-sized pieces. Combine shredded chicken, ½ cup of the enchilada sauce, queso fresco, chiles and cilantro in a bowl. Add salt and pepper if desired. Cover to keep warm.
- Lightly coat both sides of 6 tortillas with vegetable oil and place on a baking sheet. Bake until tortillas are soft & pliable, about 2 to 4 minutes.
- Quickly place tortillas on a flat surface and place ⅓ cup of the chicken mixture into each one. Tightly roll each tortilla around the chicken and place in a 9×13 baking dish. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the remaining 6 tortillas.
- Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees. Pour 1 more cup of enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle with the cheddar cheese. Cover with foil and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 3 to 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Serve with remaining enchilada sauce, optional lime wedges and optional sour cream.
This recipe turned out really good. I forgot the green chiles on the shopping list so I added some chili powder, but it still could have used a bit more kick. We also used canned MILD enchilada sauce, I think next time I am going to try and make the sauce from scratch and cook the chicken in the crock pot all day to make it easier to shred. I also prefer to use canola oil over vegetable oil. Everyone liked this dish. My kids each ate 3 enchiladas! We will definitely be making this again.
We make enchilladas similar to this on a weekly basis…so good.
One way I speed up the cooking process is boiling my chicken. I buy the chicken tenders or breasts frozen, so I always have some on hand.
Boil a big pot of water, throw in some taco seasoning (or just garlic powder and chili powder), then just throw in the chicken frozen, boil for about 8 minutes, and pull one out, cut it open to check if it’s done inside. Take two forks, and shred the chicken up for tacos, BBQ chic sandwiches, enchilladas, etc. The chicken is so moist, and you don’t have to worry about thawing it first!
mm i love chicken enchiiliadas.. these looks soo good! thank you!
This look so yummy and easy to make I can’t wait to try it out, I’ve always wanted to make enchiladas but couldn’t find a good recipe and this one looks perfect!
These healthier enchiladas look like the regular “normal” ones – I would never know. Great photos!
It’s pretty amazing that something that yummy looking can be good for you! Yum!
This sounds really delicious and I like the idea of making the chicken in the crock pot, I love my crock pot.
Your photos are purdy, too!
Now where are mine???
Yummy! I was raised on Tex-Mex since babyhood and LOVE it! This recipe is similar to one I make–add a dollop of guacamole to serve.
p.s. Just noticed your little blurb – I didn’t realize you were an architect! I have the same background, though I never got my license :)
Mmmm…enchiladas never get old, and this looks like a really great recipe.
Wow these look sooooo good! Thanks for sharing it with us Kim!